About 80 percent of the residences within the first two condominium towers currently under construction at the Ward Village master-planned community in Honolulu have been sold.

Howard Hughes Corp. CEO David Weinreb announced in a letter to shareholders that more than half of the buyers are from Hawaii. Other investors come from Japan, the Mainland U.S., as well as Canada, China, Taiwan, Korea and Australia.

Pre-sales for the 482 units in the Waiea and Anaha high-rises were launched in February. Last November, The Howard Hughes Corp. announced it had secured a $600 million non-recourse construction loan from The Blackstone Group to build the two projects.

“The sales to date demonstrate the pent-up demand for quality residential product in the urban core of Honolulu, and the broader undersupply of housing on the island of Oahu,” Weinreb said in the letter.

Anaha Condo Tower at Ward Village in Honolulu

He added that despite the increase in recent development activity on Oahu, current housing production remains near historic lows and that, according to the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization, Oahu needs to produce approximately 4,000 units annually simply to meet existing demand.

Waiea, meaning “water of life” in Hawaiian, will offer 171 units upon completion (expected by the end of 2016), while Anaha, meaning “reflection of light,” will offer 311 residences when it opens during the first half of 2017.

In 2014, The Howard Hughes Corp. also obtained approval for the next phase of projects at Ward Village, Ward Village Gateway, two residential towers designed by Richard Meier & Partners, as well as a fifth condo tower designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, which will include Whole Foods Market’s largest location in Hawaii.

Ward Village is the nation’s largest LEED-ND Platinum certified project. It incorporates and promotes the highest standards of sustainable neighborhood design, including pedestrian orientation, bicycle friendliness, easy access to public transit, use of recycled materials, as well as water and energy efficiency.